Sdot Micha Airbase (in Hebrew: , ''lit.'' Micha Fields) is an
Israeli Air Force (IAF) missile base and depot, whose existence
Israel
Israel, officially the State of Israel, is a country in West Asia. It Borders of Israel, shares borders with Lebanon to the north, Syria to the north-east, Jordan to the east, Egypt to the south-west, and the Mediterranean Sea to the west. Isr ...
neither confirms nor denies. It is situated in the center of Israel, halfway from
Jerusalem
Jerusalem is a city in the Southern Levant, on a plateau in the Judaean Mountains between the Mediterranean Sea, Mediterranean and the Dead Sea. It is one of the List of oldest continuously inhabited cities, oldest cities in the world, and ...
to the
Mediterranean Sea
The Mediterranean Sea ( ) is a sea connected to the Atlantic Ocean, surrounded by the Mediterranean basin and almost completely enclosed by land: on the east by the Levant in West Asia, on the north by Anatolia in West Asia and Southern Eur ...
and extends nearly 13 km from southeast to northwest. The center of the base is located 1.5 km north of
moshav Sdot Micha and it has neither a runway nor a visible heliport. Its facilities can now be clearly seen on satellite images. Nuclear warheads are supposed to be stored at the base, which can also be fired by the missiles there.
Name
The secret airbase has been called many names.
It is most commonly called by sources as Sdot Micha Airbase due to its proximity to
moshav Sdot Micha, and less commonly Tirosh or Zekharia Airbase (including different spelling), due to other nearby moshavs of these names or Kanaf 2 Airbase (''lit.''
Wing
A wing is a type of fin that produces both Lift (force), lift and drag while moving through air. Wings are defined by two shape characteristics, an airfoil section and a planform (aeronautics), planform. Wing efficiency is expressed as lift-to-d ...
2 Airbase).
In July 2017 the
IDF temporarily uncovered the name of the airforce's 11th and secret base called Sdot HaElah, but after the press had picked it up, it disappeared again from their website. The moshav Sdot Micha is located in the
Valley of Elah, ( ''Emek HaElah'' in Hebrew), 4 km northwest of where
David
David (; , "beloved one") was a king of ancient Israel and Judah and the third king of the United Monarchy, according to the Hebrew Bible and Old Testament.
The Tel Dan stele, an Aramaic-inscribed stone erected by a king of Aram-Dam ...
and
Goliath
Goliath ( ) was a Philistines, Philistine giant in the Book of Samuel. Descriptions of Goliath's giant, immense stature vary among biblical sources, with texts describing him as either or tall. According to the text, Goliath issued a challen ...
are believed to have fought. The stream Elah (''Nahal HaElah'') runs south of the moshav but is dry for most of the year.
A 2005 official Israeli document regarding the Privatization of the Military Industry of Israel Ltd. later renamed
IMI Systems (Resolution no. M'Kh/24 of the Ministerial Committee on Privatization Affairs dated 28.08.2005) states: "IMI's rights in part of the land division known as "Area 209" designated for the
"Arrow" battery were sold by IMI to the Ministry of Defense under an agreement dated May 10, 2005." In the official documents published at the time of the sale of IMI Systems to
Elbit Systems
Elbit Systems Ltd. is an Israel-based international military technology company and defense contractor. Founded in 1966 by Elron, Elbit Systems is the primary provider of the Israeli military's land-based equipment and unmanned aerial v ...
(Resolution No. M'Kh/2 of the Ministerial Committee on Privatization of 23.12.2013) the base is referred to again as ''Area 209'' (in Hebrew שטח אש 209). The
restricted airspace and
restricted military area covers an area of 12,550
dunam
A dunam ( Ottoman Turkish, Arabic: ; ; ; ), also known as a donum or dunum and as the old, Turkish, or Ottoman stremma, was the Ottoman unit of area analogous in role (but not equal) to the Greek stremma or English acre, representing the amo ...
s in the
Mateh Yehuda Regional Council
Mateh Yehuda Regional Council (, ''Mo'atza Azorit Mateh Yehuda'', ) is a Regional council (Israel), regional council in the Jerusalem District of Israel. In 2024 it was home to 51,125 people.
The name of the regional council stems from the fact t ...
, and was allocated to the Ministry of Defense by the
Israel Land Authority.
Missiles
Jericho
It is believed that the base is a
missile launch facility for nuclear-tipped
Jericho 2 IRBMs and probably Jericho 3
ICBM
An intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) is a ballistic missile with a range (aeronautics), range greater than , primarily designed for nuclear weapons delivery (delivering one or more Thermonuclear weapon, thermonuclear warheads). Conven ...
s. Satellite images show launch areas for mobile missiles very explicitly, which is part of their deterrence.
The roads for the mobile missile systems are in between ridges of hills, which has the advantage that the missile bunkers could be dug into the limestone hills around and only need massive doors to protect them from nuclear explosions – direct hits excluded. The missile sites are also hidden there and cannot to be seen from the outside.
Newer and sharper satellite images indicate that there are two gates and two so-called launchers per cave. The northern area has 14 of these caves and the southern area has 9, which offers space for a maximum of 46 launchers. About one and a half kilometers northwest of these positions, there is also a fenced and additionally secured area with four bunkers within the base, probably a storage facility for nuclear warheads.
Arrow
In 2012, an
Arrow 2 missile battery – the third in Israel alongside
Palmachim and
Ein Shemer – has been deployed there, near the
moshav Tal Shahar. The Arrow system was developed jointly by Israel and the USA in the 1990s and can shoot down incoming nuclear missiles at high altitudes. For target detection and tracking, it uses the
Super Green Pine Radar installed on Ein Shemer with a range of 1,000 kilometers. The Arrow system is operated by the
Israeli Air Defense Command, a division of the
IAF.
According to
Jane's Defence Weekly, Sdot Micha is also a location for the new
Arrow 3 ABM, deployed there in the beginning of 2017. Satellite photos show four rectangular bunkers capable to withstand nuclear explosions and nearby sites of mobile launchers with six Arrow 3 missiles each. The US have accidentally published where the exact locations of the bunkers are.
According to press reports, there is also a test stand for rocket engines on the site, where, among other things, the engine for the new Arrow 4 rocket is being tested. In April 2021, the loud sound of an explosion could be heard from there.
Related nearby places
Northwest of the base is
Tel Nof Airbase (see map), where two squadrons of
F-15 jets are stationed. Since such aircraft can carry free-falling
atomic bombs over long distances, it is assumed that the nuclear weapons for this are stored somewhere on the Tel Nof Airbase or in the northwestern part of Sdot Micha, where many depots and bunkers are located.
All Israel's larger missiles are developed and built at the
Israel Aerospace Industries (IAI) MLM Division missile plant south of
Be'er Ya'akov, 20 km northwest to the base.
Units
* IAF 2nd
Wing
A wing is a type of fin that produces both Lift (force), lift and drag while moving through air. Wings are defined by two shape characteristics, an airfoil section and a planform (aeronautics), planform. Wing efficiency is expressed as lift-to-d ...
** 150
Squadron Jericho IRBM / ICBM
** 199 Squadron Jericho IRBM / ICBM
** 248 Squadron Jericho IRBM / ICBM
*
Arrow 2 missile battery
*
Arrow 3 missile battery
Shavit Ofek7a.jpg, Shavit (civilian Jericho 2) missile launching on 11 June 2007
Shavit 3rd stage.JPG, Third stage of a Shavit / Jericho 2 with IAI logo
Arrow2launcher.jpg, A mobile Arrow 2 launcher, like deployed on the base
Arrow-3 Feb-25-2013 (a).jpg, Test start of an Arrow 3 on 25 February 2013
History
Palestine War 1948
Before the
1948 Palestine War, the
Palestinian Arab villages of
Al-Burayj (Bureij),
Sejed,
Jilya and
Qazaza were located on the site of today's base, but their residents fled or were expelled in the course of the fighting. The taking of the al-Buraij by Israeli soldiers, for example, happened at the beginning of
Operation Ha-Har on the night of 19 to 20 October 1948.
Al-Burayj.jpg, Greek Orthodox monastery in Arab Palestinian village of Al-Burayj, 1948
Al-Burayj iii.jpg, Another photo of the village Al-Burayj after its capture by Israel soldiers in 1948
Bureij 1947.jpg, Map of the village Al-Burayj (Bureij) and its surroundings in 1947
Operation Ha-Har.jpg, Villages captured by Israel soldiers during Operation Ha-Har in October 1948, Bureij to the left
Built in 1962
The extensive base was established in 1962 under the Hebrew name 2 כנף (Wing 2) by the later commander of the IAF
Benjamin "Benny" Peled.
According to
Seymour Hersh
Seymour Myron Hersh (born April 8, 1937) is an American investigative journalist and political writer. He gained recognition in 1969 for exposing the My Lai massacre and its cover-up during the Vietnam War, for which he received the 1970 Pulitzer ...
, the construction of the nuclear missile field at Hirbat Zachariah began at late 1967.
Yom Kippur War 1973
On
6 October 1973 Egypt and Syria attacked Israel by surprise on the
Yom Kippur
Yom Kippur ( ; , ) is the holiest day of the year in Judaism. It occurs annually on the 10th of Tishrei, corresponding to a date in late September or early October.
For traditional Jewish people, it is primarily centered on atonement and ...
holiday. As they initially pushed the
IDF back, nuclear bombs were said to have been mounted on fighter jets at
Tel Nof Airbase and on
Jericho missiles at Sdot Micha, with the intent to strike should the enemy armies have advanced further.
If true, this did not occur as Israel was able to repel both armies.
Hamas attack 2023
On the morning of 7 October 2023, the day of the
Hamas-led attack on Israel, a missile fired from the
Gaza Strip
The Gaza Strip, also known simply as Gaza, is a small territory located on the eastern coast of the Mediterranean Sea; it is the smaller of the two Palestinian territories, the other being the West Bank, that make up the State of Palestine. I ...
is said to have hit the base compound, causing a wildfire of 40 hectares, but no military facilities were seriously damaged, as ''
The New York Times
''The New York Times'' (''NYT'') is an American daily newspaper based in New York City. ''The New York Times'' covers domestic, national, and international news, and publishes opinion pieces, investigative reports, and reviews. As one of ...
'' claims to have found out based on satellite images.
At the same time, it was emphasized that the nuclear warheads presumably stored there in bunkers could never detonate by an accident or external influence.
See also
*
Nuclear weapons and Israel
Israel is widely believed to possess nuclear weapons. Estimates of Israel's stockpile range between 90 and 400 nuclear warheads, and the country is believed to possess a nuclear triad of delivery options: by F-15 and F-16 fighters, by Dolphin- ...
References
External links
Sedot Mikha / Sdot Micha / Beit Zachariah / Zekharyeh
{{Israeli Air Force
Airports in Israel
Israeli Air Force bases
Rocket launch sites in Israel
Israeli nuclear development